Child support is one of the few areas of family law where the starting answer may be found in a table. Look up the paying parent’s income, the number of children, and the province, and you have a monthly figure. For many families, this makes the first step surprisingly straightforward.
The difficulty lies in everything around that number. What counts as income for someone who runs a small business? What happens if the children spend nearly half their time with each parent? Who pays for hockey, or braces, or university? And what do you do when a job is lost or a raise comes through? The guidelines deal with each of these, and Brampton parents will find that the answers are more structured than they might expect.
The following is general information about Ontario child support, not legal advice on your family’s circumstances. The right figure in any given case depends on detailed facts about income and parenting time.
Two sets of guidelines, one table
Parents who are divorcing or divorced fall under the Federal Child Support Guidelines, made under the Divorce Act. Parents who were never married, or who are separated but not asking for a divorce, usually fall under Ontario’s Child Support Guidelines, made under the Family Law Act. The two are very similar, and Ontario has adopted the federal tables, so the monthly table amounts are the same under either one.
The underlying principle is simple: both parents must support their children, in line with their ability to pay. Support is treated as the child’s entitlement. It is not a reward or a punishment, and it is not meant to depend on how the relationship ended. Nor is it something one parent can trade away to buy peace, as courts can disregard an agreement that departs unreasonably from the guidelines.
The table amount
For a child under the age of majority, which in Ontario is 18, the basic order is set out in section 3 of the federal guidelines: the table amount, based on the paying parent’s income and the number of children, plus any amount for special or extraordinary expenses.
The tables assume the paying parent lives in Ontario if that is where they habitually reside when the application is made. If they live in another province, the table for that province typically applies. If they live outside Canada, the table for the province where the other parent lives applies instead.
The tables are updated periodically. The current tables took effect on October 1, 2025. They apply going forward from that date, and the earlier tables continue to apply to retroactive periods before it. An order made before then does not change on its own. As the Department of Justice explains, the difference between the old and updated amount can be a change in circumstances that allows a parent to seek a variation, but one of you has to take that step. The Justice Canada site has the tables and a calculator-style look-up.
What counts as income
Income starts with the “Total income” line on a T1 General tax return, and is then adjusted under Schedule III of the guidelines. For an employee with one T4 and no unusual items, this is often simple. For others, a tax return is only where the analysis begins.
Consider a few situations familiar in Peel Region:
- A trucking owner-operator or contractor. Business expenses that reduce taxable income are not automatically accepted. Under the guidelines, personal items run through the business, like part of a vehicle or a cell phone plan, may be added back to income. Certain capital cost allowance claims and other deductions may also be adjusted.
- A person with a corporation. Where someone controls a company, the court may look at pre-tax corporate income, or the value of the services they provide, rather than just the salary they draw.
- Income that swings. If this year’s earnings are unusually high or low because of overtime or a one-time payment, section 17 lets a court look at the past three years and arrive at a fairer figure.
- A parent who has stopped working. A court may impute income to someone who is intentionally underemployed or unemployed, other than because of the needs of a child, reasonable educational needs or health. It can also impute income if someone has failed to disclose required information.
The financial records required under section 21 include three years of tax returns and assessments, along with current income proof and business records where applicable. A parent who asks for the table amount only does not have to file a financial statement, but the parent who is paying must provide this information.
Special or extraordinary expenses
Section 7 is where many disputes occur. Table support covers ordinary costs. On top of that, a court may order the parents to share certain expenses, normally in proportion to their incomes after any contribution from the child and after considering subsidies and tax benefits. The categories are:
- child care required because of the employment, illness, disability, education or training of the parent who has the majority of parenting time
- the portion of medical and dental insurance premiums attributable to the child
- health expenses that exceed insurance reimbursement by at least $100 a year, such as orthodontics, therapy or prescription glasses
- extraordinary expenses for primary or secondary school, or other educational programs that meet a child’s particular needs
- post-secondary education costs
- extraordinary expenses for extracurricular activities
The court looks at whether an expense is necessary in light of the child’s best interests and reasonable in relation to the parents’ means and the family’s spending pattern before separation. So “my daughter plays competitive soccer” is not an automatic yes. It helps to keep receipts, discuss significant new expenses in advance, and put any agreement in writing. In Brampton, with so many activities through local clubs and city programs, parents would do well to set out in advance what counts as a shared cost and how bills get paid.
Time-sharing changes the math
When a child lives primarily with one parent, the arithmetic is simple. It changes if the children’s time is divided in other ways.
Split parenting. Where there are two or more children, and each parent has most of the time with at least one of them, each parent’s table amount is calculated and the higher payor pays the difference (section 8).
Shared parenting. Where each parent has the child for at least 40 per cent of the time over the course of a year, section 9 applies. The court is not simply required to set off one table amount against the other. It looks at the table amounts, the increased costs of shared parenting, and the conditions, means, needs and other circumstances of each parent and child. Set-off is often a starting point, but it is not automatically the final answer.
Because 40 per cent can have a real effect on the outcome, disputes over how time is counted are common. Parenting schedules should be decided in the child’s interests, not engineered to reach a percentage. A judge is likely to notice when a schedule appears designed to reduce support. Our page on child and spousal support offers more on how these issues are handled.
Higher incomes, and hardship
For incomes over $150,000, the table amount is presumed to apply. A court may depart from it if it finds that amount inappropriate, setting support using the table for the first $150,000 plus an amount it considers appropriate for the rest, having regard to the child’s needs and the parents’ means.
At the other end, a parent can claim undue hardship under section 10, based on circumstances such as unusually high debts reasonably incurred to support the family, or unusually high costs of exercising parenting time, or a legal duty to support another person. The test is demanding. A claim must be denied if the parent making it would have a higher household standard of living than the other parent, which is calculated using a formula in Schedule II.
Older children
Support does not end automatically at 18. In the Divorce Act, a “child of the marriage” can include one who is at or over the age of majority but cannot withdraw from parental care because of illness, disability or other cause, and this commonly includes full-time post-secondary study. Ontario’s Family Law Act also has an obligation for a child who is enrolled in a full-time program of education or who is unable to withdraw from parental charge because of illness or disability.
For adult children, the court may apply the guidelines as if the child were a minor, or set an amount that takes into account the child’s condition, means, needs and other circumstances. Practical issues include whether the child lives at home during the school year, their own earnings, and any student aid. A parent may not simply stop paying when the child turns 18 if an order remains in place. Get the order or agreement changed properly.
Getting a support arrangement in place
You have more than one option:
- Agree directly and write it down. Many parents use a written agreement, signed and witnessed, and may file it with the court. Ontario’s guidance refers to using Form 26B to do so.
- Use Ontario’s Child Support Service. This provincial online service allows eligible parents to set up or change child support outside of court. It does not suit every situation, and if you are notified that the other parent has applied, you need to respond promptly: Ontario currently gives 25 calendar days.
- Go to court. A claim can be started in the Ontario Court of Justice or, if you need a divorce or property relief, the Superior Court, both at 7755 Hurontario Street in Brampton. Free mediation and information services at the courthouse may be available too.
Whichever way you go, payment can be handled through the Family Responsibility Office. Court orders are sent there automatically, while a written agreement must first be filed with the court. The office collects payments and can take enforcement steps when support is not paid.
Keeping support current
Income changes, children grow and schedules shift. Section 25 of the guidelines lets one parent, no more than once a year, make a written request for updated financial information from the other. The parent who receives that request has 30 days to respond if they live in Canada or the U.S., and 60 days if they live elsewhere.
If a significant change occurs, such as a job loss or a change in where the children live, do not simply stop paying or start paying less. Arrears build up under an existing order until it is changed. Try to reach an agreement promptly, use a recalculation service if you are eligible, or bring a motion to change. Also keep in mind that child support is generally not taxable to the person who receives it and not deductible by the person who pays under current arrangements, unlike ordinary periodic spousal support.
Most parents can work out the table figure themselves. The harder cases involve self-employment, shared time or disputed expenses, and there it may be worth asking a lawyer to run the numbers before you commit to a figure. Our Brampton office is available if you need help assessing your situation.